The Mountains to Sea Trail is in North Carolina. The section which traverses Watauga County is a distance of 16 miles. The intent of this blog shall be to share the progress of our work and the beauty of the trail with others. This blog is hosted and moderated by Shelton Wilder.

Friday, October 9, 2009

BIG DIG ~ ThunderHill ~ Blowing Rock ~ Watauga Task Force

Our second Big Dig was held October 3, 4 on ThunderHill and Don Hayes Road in Watauga County. It was a blustery morning up here in these mountains. John, our Watauga Task Force Coordinator, was out early to greet all volunteers as they arrived.

John is always enthusiastic and welcoming to those who share an interest in the MST in Watauga. John has devoted countless hours, selfless leadership, and amazing organization skills behind the scenes to make this event come together.

Soon the Man of the Day, weekend, perhaps the century (well, 80 some years of it ;-) arrives. Allen deHart had tirelessly led us all in the building of this trail. His knowledge of the trail, his history with the Watauga section going back to 1998, and his charismatic leadership has gotten us to this point. We could not do what we do without him doing what he does for all of us. Much of this weekend Big Dig happened because of his good planning, experience, and dedication (shall we say devotion) to the MST.

Socializing, catching up with old friends, waiting for the day to begin.

Quite a crowd arrived and we had approximately 30 workers off an on during the Big Dig. And many other volunteers behind the scenes.

These fine students are Georgia Tech Trailblazers. They came up to these mountains on their fall break to do volunteer work on our trail. Can we get a hip hip hooray!

Planning the teams and inspiring the kids, Allen steps right in and seeks out the leaders in this group. Within hours he will have trained and motivated them with his skills as a teacher and leader. Thanks Allen!

John Lanman's Trail Report

Trail work will begin again in the spring. Check back for scheduled work days.

828-963-6901

Contact JohnThanks.

Whats the Weather Looking Like in These Mountains???? Click below for Ray's Forecast!

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Most photos can be scrolled over and clicked upon to enlarge.

MST road sign

Look for our MST WORK sign if you want to find us on the trail.

Do You Want to Become a Trail Volunteer?

We welcome new volunteer helpers on the Mountains to Sea Trail in Watauga County. There is something for everyone to do no matter what your ability or experience. We have participants ranging in age from 14 to 84. For more information please contact John (828-963-6901) our Task Force Co-ordinator and Crew leader or Shelton (828.264.5317) Crew Leader and Blog Moderator for more information. We will have scheduled work days on the Thursday prior to the third Saturday of each month AND the third Saturday of each month. We supply all of the tools and gloves. Look for the MST WORK sign along the road. If you miss us at 8:30 come to the Blue Ridge Parkway and look for our orangeMST WORKsign!